


the dog

by lookitscloudie



Category: Naruto
Genre: Dogs, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Light Angst, not really tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 22:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29923998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lookitscloudie/pseuds/lookitscloudie
Summary: When Team Kakashi comes across a stray dog, Kakashi decides to take her in and help nurse her to health. He doesn't realize how easy it is to get attached to a furry friend.
Relationships: Dai-nana-han | Team 7 & Hatake Kakashi, Everyone & Everyone, Hatake Kakashi & Maito Gai | Might Guy
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	the dog

**Author's Note:**

> hehehehe dog  
> sorry if this is a bit ooc for any of the characters, i really just wanted to have fun with it

Kakashi led his team through the motions of packing up camp, hiding their campfire and scuffing up their footprints. He concealed the bag of money the team had collected after a successful mission, and when he turned around, Naruto was right there, his obnoxious (but adorable somehow adorable) grin giving away the fact that he had a  _ very _ important question.

“Yes, Naruto?”

“Kakashi-sensei, how long until we get home?” Naruto asked. 

“We should be home by tomorrow afternoon if we’re efficient,” Kakashi said, thinking. “But there’s a small town nearby we can stop by and get us home by tomorrow evening.”

“Sounds good,” Sakura said. “And we can restock on weapons in the town, right? I almost ran out of shuriken in the fight we got into yesterday.”

“Mhm.” 

“Hey, Sakura, I can head to the weapons store with you!” Naruto grinned. “I need… a new kunai! Yeah, we’ll go together!”

“Of course you need a new kunai,” Sasuke scoffed. “You don’t know how to use them properly, so you’re always wearing them down.”

“What was that?” Naruto turned to glare at him. “I know how to use my weapons perfectly fine! I bet I could throw a kunai better than you!”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Alright, you two,” Kakashi sighed. “Let’s get moving.”

“Yeah, Naruto!” Sakura crossed her arms. “Stop arguing with Sasuke, you know you’ll never win!”

Kakashi rolled his eyes as his students continued to argue, barely noticing him starting the trek, leaving them behind. 

“Sensei, don’t leave us behind!” Naruto cried after a minute, finally noticing. Kakashi kept walking, knowing his students would catch up soon. Naruto came first, loud, clunky steps; followed by a nearly silent Sasuke, and lastly Sakura.

“So, how long until we get to the town?” Sakura asked.

“A few hours.” Kakashi pulled out his map, pointing to spots. “We’re here. You see where we’re headed?”

“Oh, that one, right?” Sakura pointed to a small point near them.

“Mhm. It’s only a couple kilometers away. If we don’t have any incidents, we’ll be there soon. If we do have an incident, all three of you are to stay out, as your weapons situation is… less than desirable. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!”

“Hm.”

“C’mon, sensei, we can still help! I can use… uh…”

“Stay out of it, Naruto.”

“Okay.” Naruto pouted.

\---

“What’s that?” Naruto yelled, throwing his last shuriken into the woods, where he’d heard a rustle. There was a high-pitched scream that Kakashi had heard multiple times over his lifetime. Before his students could react, he darted into the woods to see if his intuition was correct, hoping against hope that it was wrong, just this one time. His heart dropped when he saw the truth; Naruto had hit a dog in the leg- a big, golden one with matted fur and a thin frame that pointed to malnutrition. 

“What’d I hit?” Naruto yelled, running towards Kakashi.

“Quiet!” Kakashi hissed as the dog tried to scurry backwards, letting out another squeal. “Front left leg. If it’d been any farther to the right, you could’ve pierced something more important. And stay back. You’re scaring her.”

“I’m just gonna get my shuriken and we’ll be on our way, right?” Naruto looked confused.

“No,” Kakashi said, crouching down to get on the dog’s level.

“It’s just a dog,” Sasuke scoffed. “C’mon.”

“You three, get to the village. Sakura knows the way, right?”

“It’s half a kilometer east from here,” she said, nodding.

“Mhm. I’ll meet up with you all later. Might be a while.” 

“Okay,” Sakura said. “You sure you don’t want help with the dog?”

“Mhm. Now go. When I get there, we’ll figure out what to do with her, alright? The shuriken hurt her too much to be staying out in the woods on her own.” Kakashi didn’t even hold back his glare at Naruto. 

“So weird,” Sasuke muttered as Sakura took him and Naruto by the arms and dragged them off, despite complaints. Kakashi turned back to the dog and reached a hand out, allowing her to sniff it. He considered summoning Pakkun to be able to communicate better, but he figured having less commotion would be best to keep the dog comfortable.

“Hey,” he said softly as the dog pulled herself toward Kakashi. Being sure to move slowly, he reached for the first aid pack and water. “It’s okay,” he said, even softer as she looked at the items, clearly afraid. From the way she looked, she clearly had never been a ninja dog, so he didn’t have to worry about her attacking or relaying any information to anyone. 

Kakashi poured some water into the wound on the dog’s leg, helping to free the shuriken and clean the majority of the wound. She flinched but clearly understood that Kakashi was there to help. He pulled out antiseptic and bandages, knowing he’d used them on his own hounds and that it worked.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, pulling the shuriken out spraying the antiseptic on the wound. The dog let out another yelp and Kakashi flinched. “I know it hurts, I know,” he mumbled, petting her head in an attempt to calm her. He was surprised she’d warmed up to him so fast. He pulled out the bandage, holding her leg as he wrapped the wound. He tried to help her stand, but she leaned on him too much for her to be able to walk.

“We’re doing this the hard way, huh?” Kakashi sighed, slowly wrapping his arms around her. The dog whimpered; she was far too big to be carried, but she let Kakashi lift her up nonetheless. “Good girl,” he mumbled, trying his best to keep her as comfortable as possible without touching her injured leg. He settled on holding her like a baby; her front legs sat over his shoulders, and he had one arm under her and the other around her back. He decided that he’d carry her all the way to the village and if his students had a problem, then they’d just have to get over it.

He walked quickly, running his hand through the dog’s fur in an attempt to keep her calm. He talked softly to her, knowing it wouldn’t do much. It was more out of habit; he always talked to his hounds, who he knew could understand his words. 

“Do you have a name?” he asked as they neared the village. “An age? An owner I can bring you to?”

The dog didn’t respond; she just rested her head on Kakashi’s shoulder. Kakashi couldn’t help but smile. 

“Sensei!” Naruto yelled. “Why are you carrying the dog?”

“Be quiet around her,” Kakashi said. “She’s skittish. And she can’t walk, so we’re going to keep her with us until we can find a suitable owner.”

“Sensei, she was a stray,” Sakura huffed. “She doesn’t need us to stay with her.”

“But we’re helping her anyway,” Kakashi said, his voice stopping any arguments his students could pose. “She could make a fine ninja hound if a new owner taught her right.”

“We all know you’re just a softie for dogs, Kaka-senesi.” Naruto grinned. 

“We need to get back on the road,” Sasuke said, crossing his arms. 

“We’ll stay here for a day to be sure we can get her to someone,” Kakashi said. “She’d just slow us down if we left now.”

“Makes sense,” Sakura said. “So should we stay at the inn across town, then?”

“Yeah.” 

“She looks kinda uncomfortable,” Naruto said.

“Of course she does,” Kakashi sighed. “Dogs don’t like being carried around.”

“Is she staying with us in the inn?” Sakura asked.

“Mhm. She’ll stay with you for the night.” Kakashi watched Sakura’s face light up.

“Alright! I’ll be sure she’s safe!” Sakura reached up and scratched under the dog’s chin. “She needs a name.”

“Ramen!” Naruto suggested.

“That’s a terrible name,” Sasuke scoffed. 

“We’ll call her Inu,” Kakashi said. 

“That’s a cute name for her!” Sakura watched the dog. “Inu!”

As the team checked into the hotel, the receptionist gave Kakashi a dirty look as her eyes rested on Inu, but something in his voice must have convinced her to let them in as he said ‘two rooms’ and slapped money on the desk.

“Rooms 203 and 204.” She gave both keys to Sakura, who handed 203’s key to Naruto. “Second floor.”

“Thank you!” Sakura said, leading the team away.

“I’m going to give her a bath,” Kakashi said when everyone had dropped their stuff off in their rooms. “You three go get some food. We need some kind of meat and vegetable. You guys have money, right?”

“Yep,” Sakura said. “C’mon, Sasuke!”

“Good luck, sensei!” Naruto said, handing Kakashi the key and turning to follow Sakura and Sasuke.

“C’mon, Inu,” Kakashi sighed. “Let’s get you a bath.”

He set the dog down on the bathroom floor and started the water. Inu tried to move towards the door at the loud sound, but Kakashi pulled her close. 

“It’s just water, girl.” Kakashi scratched her head, and she nuzzled into his hand. “We’ll have to get your bandages off. I… didn’t think that through.”

He took the end of the bandage around her leg, lightly pulling on it. Inu whimpered and moved away from Kakashi.

“Stay here. It’s alright,” he muttered, lightly pulling at the bandaged. “If we’re gonna get you in the bath, we need to get these off.”

Inu sat in the corner of the room, clearly trying to shrink back. Kakashi turned the water off to let it cool and sat across the floor from Inu. He’d learned to let dogs come to him instead of forcing them to do anything. So he waited, being sure to avoid eye contact. He had enough experience with dogs to know when to just wait for them. He didn’t want Inu to be afraid of him.

“C’mere,” he sighed. “Please?”

Inu stayed still, carefully laying down and looking up at Kakashi. 

“I know, you’re hungry,” he sighed. “But you need a bath first.” He summoned Pakkun, putting the tiny dog on the tile. Inu lifted her head, looking at Pakkun.

“What is it?” Pakkun asked.

“Can you help me get her bandages off? We also need to get her in the bath,” Kakashi said.

“Fine.” Pakkun walked up to Inu and bit at her bandages.

“Thanks.”

“She’s terrified of you, you know that?” Pakkun asked after a minute. “But she also knows that you helped her and I think she’s grateful.”

“Mhm.” Kakashi moved slightly closer to Inu, hoping that she knew he wasn’t there to hurt her.

“What’s her name?”

“I’m calling her Inu for now.”

“Very creative.” Pakkun got back to work on the bandages, pulling them off. “Looks like a shuriken wound. And a fairly new one at that.”

“Mhm.” Kakashi reached out to scratch Inu’s chin. She lifted her head slightly and nuzzled his hand, but didn’t stand. “Now we need to get her into the bath. Why don’t you get in first to show her-”

“Nope. Not happening. Summon Bull. I bet he’d let you-”

“Bull wouldn’t fit in the tub. Besides, how long has it been since you last had a bath?”

“Doesn’t matter. I’m not getting in the bath.”

“Please?”

“No.”

“If you help me, when I get home, I’ll get you treats.”

“The peanut butter ones?”

“Mhm.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” Pakkun let Kakashi take his vest before he stood on the side of the bath and looked at Inu. 

“Alright, fine.” Kakashi guided Inu’s face toward the bath, showing her how Pakkun hopped into the water, glaring at Kakashi the entire time. Kakashi moved closer to Inu, slowly lifting her to get her into the bath. Pakkun must’ve done something to convince her that it was safe, because she sat next to the tiny pug and begrudgingly allowed Kakashi to begin scrubbing dirt out of her fur. 

“Am I done here?” Pakkun asked.

“I think so.” Kakashi reached down to pat his head, only to enable the dog to climb up his arm and shake himself dry on Kakashi’s shoulder, soaking him to the bone. “Pakkun!” He groaned as the tiny dog disappeared in smoke. Inu tried to jump out of the bath at his loud exclamation, getting the entire bathroom floor soaked. “No, no, Inu, stay, please- shit.” Kakashi held the big dog down in the tub, but not before his clothes got soaked through. He sighed and tried to calm Inu down as she freaked out and somehow got everything even more wet than it already was.

“Inu, can you sit? Please?” Kakashi was determined to keep the bathroom as dry as he possibly could. “Stay?” 

There was still  _ so much mud  _ in her fur. Kakashi racked his brain for anything to calm her down. Talking to her wouldn’t work, he didn’t have any treats on him, and he wasn’t about to just hold her down. The last thing he could come up with was singing to her, which his father had done, singing both him and the dogs to sleep. But there was no way that would ever work; Kakashi could barely hum a tune, and he didn’t even know what he _ could _ sing to calm down a frantic dog. 

He suddenly remembered something he’d heard in the Inuzuka clan; Tsume had called it the ‘dog charmer,’ and apparently it always calmed dogs down. He’d heard Hana hum it once but couldn’t quite remember the tune. He sighed and settled for trying to talk to the dog.

“Alright, I’m going to try and get the mud out of your fur, alright?” He kept his voice soft and low, hoping to keep Inu calm. “Why don’t I get some of the blood away from that cut on your leg, hm?” He carefully took the paw to lift up the leg, trying to keep himself talking as he examined the wound properly and began to work the blood out of the fur. “If I’m honest, I’m glad it was Naruto who hit you and not some random person who wouldn’t care. Or someone who had a poisoned weapon.” Kakashi felt dumb talking to a dog that couldn’t understand him, but his voice seemed to calm her down.

“I wonder where my students are? They might’ve gotten lost. Or they could be arguing somewhere. That’s probably it. Sasuke probably called Naruto ‘dead last’ and Naruto threw a fit. Sakura probably had to take the food so that it didn’t go spilling everywhere.” Kakashi laughed and moved from Inu’s leg to her floppy ears, running his hands through the dirt. “I’m gonna grab a brush.” He put his hand up, signalling for her to stay as he ran to his bag, trying his best not to get water on the floor. He reached to the bottom of his bag, grabbing the hairbrush Gai always made him bring, despite knowing that brushing his hair is an impossible feat.

He was lucky he brought it this time, as it was perfect to get the mud and anything else out. He dipped the brush in the bathwater and ran it through Inu’s fur, trying to get it clean. He could already see her fur shining through and it was a shame he didn’t have any shampoo to really get her fur clean. 

“Let’s get you dried,” Kakashi said softly, pulling the plug to drain the tub. He reached for a towel and caught Inu in it, stopping her as she jumped from the tub and tried to escape the bathroom.

“We’re back!” Naruto called, bursting in through the door. Great. The last thing that could possibly make the situation worse. Inu barked, trying to push past Kakashi.

“Put the food down in the kitchen area,” Kakashi called back. “What’d you guys get?”

“We found pork and… Sakura, what is this?” Naruto pointed to the vegetables they’d brought in.

“Sprouts. They’re a healthy and necessary part of any shinobi’s diet.”

“Okay, Sakura and Naruto, come help dry-” in the two seconds that Kakashi let go of Inu to give directions, she had managed to shake herself off, spraying water everywhere. “Nevermind. Sasuke, there are pans in the cabinets down there, right?”

“Probably.” Sasuke shrugged, but made no motion to check.

“Thanks for being so helpful. Sakura, come make sure this dog doesn’t try to run and see if you can finish drying her off. Sasuke and Naruto, you two can… help me start dinner.” Kakashi stood up as Sakura came and sat by Inu, holding her to dry her. Inu moved away from Sakura, clearly still afraid. “Watch her front leg.”

“Alright.” 

“Now, you two-”

“Sensei, you smell like wet dog,” Naruto said, wrinkling his nose.

“Of course he does, idiot,” Sasuke said, smirking. “He just tried to give a dog a bath and-”

“Sensei, did you use a human hair brush for the dog?” Sakura called. “Whose is this?”

“Mine; I always use it on the dogs,” Kakashi said, waving away her concern.

“Gross,” Sakura muttered.

“Anyway, let’s start making dinner,” Kakashi said.

\---

As the team sat around a table- and Inu on the floor- with full plates, Kakashi began to outline the plan.

“Tomorrow, we’ll find Inu a better home- preferably with a family- and then we’ll leave, which should get us home late into tomorrow night, then you three can all go home and I’ll give the report. Sounds good?”

Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto all nodded. Kakashi looked down at Inu, who was guarding her food as she ate, looking around every few seconds, then back at his students, who were intently staring at him as if they wanted to see under his mask. 

“Oh, look! She’s falling asleep.” Kakashi pointed at Inu. “She’s so cute, isn’t she?” Once his students turned, he ate everything on his plate, pulling his mask up just as they turned back.

“I’m starting to wonder if you even actually eat,” Naruto pouted, though Kakashi’s empty plate was a clear sign that he had, in fact, eaten. 

“Well, that’s a great question!” Kakashi smiled. “I guess you’ll find out next time.”

“Next time?” Naruto asked.

“Yep!” Kakashi smiled warmly at his students before picking up his and Inu’s plates and put them in the sink. “You three should get some sleep. We’re gonna get an early start in the morning and you need to be ready. Sakura, you’re with Inu, alright? Did any of you bring something that could be used as a collar for her other than rope?”

“No,” Naruto said.

“I brought an extra shirt I can tailor into a collar,” Sakura said.

“That’s not necessary,” Kakashi said. “We’ll figure something out. But now, you all need sleep.” He ruffled Sakura’s hair as he walked by her to help Inu up. “She probably won’t be walking right for a while, unless we can find a medic of some sort.”

“Alright! I’ll bring her to my room and make sure she’s okay.”

“Good night, Sakura!” Naruto said, grinning. “Aw, man, sensei, you really made us adopt a dog, huh? Is he part of our team now?”

“Like I’ve said multiple times, we’re finding her a home tomorrow,” Kakashi said. He’d grown fond of the dog; she was likely still growing, and if he could get her on a proper diet, she’d be a fine ninja dog. Maybe he could bring her to the Inuzukas. He thought about it as he sat on one of the beds in the room.

“You smell like dog; I can smell it from here,” Sasuke grumbled.  
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll shower in the morning.” Kakashi laid down and rolled away from his students, hoping Inu was alright. She’d be fine. She was with Sakura.

\---

“Good morning!” Sakura knocked on the door to the boys’ room bright and early- Kakashi-sensei had said something about leaving first thing in the morning. And her room smelled like dog pee, but that was another story.

“Go away,” Sasuke called.

“It’s 7:00, it’s time for you to at least be awake.” It was actually 6:30, but Sakura wasn’t about to go back into that room. Inu stood by her side and could clearly smell Kakashi, as she was nuzzling the door and whining.

“Good morning, Sakura!” Naruto opened the door and Sakura looked into the room. It was dark, but she could still make out the figures of her teacher and Sasuke rolling over to avoid the light she was letting in. Inu hobbled in; she’d clearly gotten more used to working on three legs, and she ran straight to Kakashi-sensei’s bed, using her back legs to leap onto his bed, her tail wagging as she found his face and began licking him in an attempt to make him get up.

“Good morning!” Sakura smiled at her teammate.

“I- uh- still have to get dressed and stuff, but you can come sit with us, if you want. We should be getting up soon, anyway.” Naruto ran a hand through his messy hair, wincing as his fingers caught on knots.

“Sensei, do you have any plans for how-” Sakura turned to her teacher, who was already asleep again, this time with the dog laying in his arms. 

“Kakashi-sensei, wake up! You, too, Sasuke!” Naruto called. Sakura stood and began opening the blinds all around the room, letting the rising sun into the room.

“We have to get up so we can get home by tonight!” Sakura began working on cooking eggs for everyone, which got Sasuke up.

“I’ll make them,” he muttered, shoving her out of the way. “I’ve tasted your baking, and your cooking is probably just as bad.”

“Jeez, you’re cheerful,” Naruto muttered sarcastically. “Kakashi-sensei, you still have to get up!” 

“I’m up.” Kakashi sat up, taking Inu with him. “We’ll find you a home today,” he mumbled to the dog, who twisted around to lick his masked cheek. 

“Aw, she likes you!” Sakura smiled as Kakashi stood up, leaving Inu on his bed. 

\---

“Alright, the plan is that we’re going to take her to the Inuzuka clan,” Kakashi said when Sakura had gotten everyone out. “I don’t think she wants to stay around here, so we’ll take her home with us. If we set out at a slower pace, she should be able to keep up with us.”

“She’ll fit right in with them,” Sakura said with a smile.

“Yeah, I bet Kiba’s gonna love her!” Naruto said. “Right, girl? You’re gonna be nice to Kiba, right?” 

“She can’t understand you.” Sasuke crossed his arms.

“Yes, she can!” Naruto insisted. “You’re… going… to… find… a… nice… family,” he said slowly. “See? She looks happy! I bet she knows exactly what I said!”

“Actually, she’s just panting because she has a thick coat and it’s hot out here,” Kakashi said. “Usually she’d probably be wading in a river in weather like this.”

“It’s not even that warm out,” Naruto said.

“For her it is,” Kakashi reminded him. “Her fur is thicker than your clothes.”

“Oh.” Naruto crossed his arms. “Well, I bet she still knows she’s going to a great home!”

“She’s coming home with us, of course she’s going to a great home!” Sakura said triumphantly. “Kakashi-sensei knows how to take care of dogs, Sasuke and I can take her on walks, and you can give her all the hugs she needs!”

“We’re taking her to the Inuzukas,” Kakashi reminded her. “So the most we’ll be doing is pitching in to get her food or something.”

“Yeah, well, I visit Kiba pretty regularly, so I’ll get to see her all the time! I’ll keep you updated on how she’s doing, alright?”

“Sounds good.” Kakashi smiled. 

\---

Kakashi carried Inu for the last stretch to Konoha; she got too tired and slowed everyone down, and small whines could be easily heard with each step. So he’d opted to carry her for the last kilometer. He could use the extra workout.

The team walked through the gates late into the night, and everyone was too exhausted to even say a proper goodbye. Kakashi figured he could take Ina home for the evening and bring her to the Inuzukas the next morning, right? He dragged himself home and set Inu down on his couch, watching her curl up and fall asleep almost immediately. He couldn’t help but smile; his scent was all over his house, so it must have been calming for her. He didn’t bother taking off his body armor or even taking a quick shower before crashing into his bed and finally letting himself relax.

\---

The next morning, Kakashi took Inu outside, just bringing her for a couple laps around his property. After he gave Inu some of the food he usually set out for his ninken, he figured writing up the mission report would be a good next step towards being productive. So he pulled out a scroll and began writing. Mission reports were never fun, but he understood why they needed to be done, so he wrote until he’d finished the scroll, read it over, stuck it in his pack, and set out with Inu.

“We’ll take you to the Inuzukas first, alright?” He led Inu to the Inuzuka compound and took a deep breath before knocking on the front door.

“Hm?” Tsume opened the door.

“We found a dog,” Kakashi said awkwardly. 

“I see that.”

“She’s kind of been clinging onto me, and her leg was hurt.” Kakashi realized that the conversation wasn’t going to go the way he’d rehearsed in his mind. “She’s pretty much been staying with my team and I’ve bandaged her injured leg, but I think an actual vet would be able to patch her up the best.”

“Mhm.” Tsume crossed her arms. “Do you want us to take her in?”

“If you could…” Kakashi suddenly felt very tiny. Tsume had that effect.

“Does she have a name?”

“We’ve been calling her ‘Inu.’”

“Calling a dog ‘dog.’ Not the worst name I’ve seen in my years.” Tsume looked down at Inu. “Hana gets home from a mission this afternoon, so we should be able to treat her soon, alright?”

“Thank you.” Kakashi bowed slightly as Tsume took Inu in, pulling her away from Kakashi. Kakashi went to the Hokage’s office, bowing to Lord Third as he presented the scroll before leaving just as quickly as he’d arrived. He didn’t want to admit it- not even to himself- but he was already missing Inu. She was a good dog. He’d probably get to visit her at some point, but he’d grown to like her.

\---

Tsume watched as her daughter started her magical work on the dog. Hana hummed the tune that Tsume had taught her all those years ago; it always calmed dogs down without putting them to sleep. Hana took off the bandages that Kakashi had put on; for someone who doesn’t usually do medical work, it was impressive. But it was still pressing down the wrong way, and she had to remove it.

Hana knew that Kakashi was a miracle worker with dogs; from what she’d heard from her mom, he’d been like that since he was a kid. She wished that he could be there to help, as Inu wouldn’t stop squirming out of her grip and whimpering when she so much as touched the bandages. The poor girl had clearly made an attachment to Kakashi, and Hana didn’t want to ruin it. Even the ‘dog charmer’ song she’d learned didn’t work to calm her.

“Mom, can you get some treats for her? The ones Kiba gives Akamaru would probably be best.”

“Sure.” Tsume left to grab the treats, leaving Hana with Inu. If there was one thing she knew for sure, it was that they’d need a new name. You can’t just name your dog ‘dog.’ Ina could work; it was close enough to Inu and was cute. Tsume took the chicken treats Akamaru always got off Kiba’s desk. As she walked back into the kitchen, where Hana was still working with Inu, the dog looked up at her and her nose immediately went to the treats.

“You want these?” Tsume shook the bag and Inu’s tail gave away her excitement. “Hana, hold her still. I’ll give her treats while you fix her bandages.”

“M’kay.” Hana held the dog and began working at the bandages as Tsume pulled out a chicken treat. Inu stayed calm and took the treats, almost totally forgetting the fear that had been there just moments before.

\---

As Kakashi finished his day of training with his students, he dismissed them and sent them home before wandering over to the Inuzuka complex.

“Kakashi-sensei, what’re you doing here?” Kiba asked, opening the door. Kakashi opened his mouth to respond, but the loud sound of a dog sprinting across the house interrupted him as Inu barrelled across the house and launched herself at Kakashi, her front paws hitting his shoulders as she stretched up.

“I already told you that Kakashi was the one to find her,” Tsume said before turning to Kakashi. “She’s missed you.”

“Yeah,” Kakashi said, rubbing the dog’s head.

“We’re naming her Ina,” Hana said. 

“Ina,” Kakashi repeated. “I see you gave her a proper bath?” He ran his hands through her golden coat; it would take a while for it to properly grow in and get its best shine, but she was already looking so much better than she had before.

\---

As years passed, Ina stayed by Kakashi’s side, spending more time with him than with anyone else. She got to know Kakashi’s pack of hounds, went on missions with him and his students, and even got to accompany Kakashi to top-secret meetings. The entire village knew and loved her, and she held a special place in the hearts of anyone who regularly carries snacks.

^^^^ the clingy bastard i based ina off of

**Author's Note:**

> i think its important that everyone knows that i chose to name her ina after ina leifsdottir from voltron


End file.
